Emma Raducanu will return to tennis at the Auckland Open in January after eight months out of the game.
Raducanu, who pulled out of an exhibition occasion in China final month as a precaution, has not performed since April and is at the moment ranked 296 on the earth.
The 21-year-old will make her comeback at the Auckland Open on the week starting January 1 – reside on Sky Sports – with Coco Gauff additionally in motion in the identical match.
The Times reported on Tuesday that Raducanu signed up to the Australian Open entry listing utilizing her protected rating of 103.
However, because it stands that won’t get her into the primary draw, which means she is going to both need to qualify, be awarded a wild card or hope different gamers drop out.
The protected rating, often known as particular rating, is a system the place gamers on the tour who’ve been out of motion long-term can re-enter occasions at the rating they discovered themselves once they final obtained cash at an occasion.
Raducanu has been stricken by accidents since her 2021 US Open triumph
The Australian Open qualifying begins on January 8, with the Grand Slam at Melbourne Park getting below method on January 14.
While an Australian Open wild card isn’t out of the query for Raducanu, organisers have a tendency to prioritise native expertise which means Raducanu would need three wins in qualifying to attain the primary draw.
That can be acquainted territory for the previous British No 1, nonetheless, as she turned the one participant in historical past to win a grand slam title as a qualifier when she received the US Open at Flushing Meadows two years in the past.
The 21-year-old has been stepping up her coaching just lately at the National Tennis Centre in London after surgical procedure on every wrist and one other operation on her ankle and this week was coaching in Hong Kong, whereas visiting town for a sponsor occasion.
Raducanu has undergone three surgical procedures (credit score: @emmaraducanu Instagram)
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